It’s been a busy week for football. Sepp Blatter resigned from his FIFA presidency, Rafa Benitez became Real Madrid manager and an ad starring Barcelona forward Lionel Messi has been crowned YouTube’s ‘ad of the decade.’
YouTube crowned the Turkish Airlines advert, which stars Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi and basketball legend Kobe Bryant, the ad of the decade as part of its prestigious 10th anniversary celebrations.
Called ‘Kobe vs Messi: The Selfie Shootout,” the 2013 advertisement shows both sporting legends trotting around the globe to see who can take better selfies. It’s follows on from a similar Turkish Airlines advert in 2012 where both stars battle for a child’s attention on a plane.
The advert, which has been viewed almost 141 million times on YouTube, was created by agencies Crispin Porter + Bogusky, and Starcom.
“‘Selfie Shootout’ had all the right ingredients for success on YouTube – an adventuresome client, two of the most globally well-loved figures in sports, a great idea and a terrific platform to share our work,” said Crispin Porter + Bogusky chief executive Andrew Keller.
YouTube shortlisted 19 other adverts and asked advertisers and marketers to vote for their favourites from the list. Volkswagen’s ‘The Force’ advert, which has 62 million views came second. It stars a young boy dressed as Darth Vader trying to use the Force to move objects around him. Finishing off the top five were Always’ ‘Like A Girl’ advert, Volvo’s ‘The Epic Split’ featuring famous actor Jean Claude Van Damme, and Dove’s ‘Real Beauty Sketches.’ Combine all five adverts together and they’ve all gathered more than 7.7m viewing hours, or 875 years, according to YouTube.
Does the Turkish Airlines advert featuring Lionel Messi and Kobe Bryant deserve the top spot? Should Rafa Benitez have been made Real Madrid manager? Let us know in the comments below.